AUSTIN, TX— Visit Austin, together with several local partners and sponsors, raised $40,000 benefiting Art from the Streets, with funds also going to the artists. The “Give Back Gig” fundraiser took place on May 8th as part of the 34th annual National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW). Visit Austin also celebrated NTTW by recognizing local ambassadors as Austin’s “Faces of Travel.”

“Visit Austin, along with many in the hospitality industry, were fortunate enough to be able to give back to those in our community by celebrating the talents of the artists from Art from the Streets during our very first ‘Give back Gig’,” said Tom Noonan, President and CEO of Visit Austin. “Not only were we able to give back, we were able to celebrate and recognize the ‘Faces of Travel’ who make Austin a city that everyone wants to visit.”

About Visit AustinVisit Austin is the official destination marketing and sales organization for the City of Austin. An accredited member of the Destination Marketing Association International, Visit Austin is charged with marketing Austin nationally and internationally as a premier business and leisure destination, thus enriching our community's overall quality of life. In 2015, the greater Austin MSA welcomed 24.1 million visitors who contributed to $7 billion in economic impact and 124,000 jobs.

About Art from the StreetsArt from the Streets is a free and open studio in Austin that serves the homeless community. Art from the Streets was founded in 1991 to provide a safe and encouraging space for the positive spirit of artistic expression of those who need it most. For the past 25 years AFTS has been a place for creating amazing work while providing insight into the human beings who brought them to life.